#softdedue

The glowing eyes belonged to a mermaid. Not a mermaid from stories meant to excite a child's imagination before bed-- this was a mermaid straight from the deepest parts of nightmare. A character from a fireside tale told by the oldest of sailors. This mermaid in particular sported skin so pale it was nearly translucent, a tail black as ink, and eyes that seemed to pierce Dedue as they narrowed. Allowing this mermaid close could also mean death.

"Let me cut you free," the glowing eyes said slowly, "and I will lead you from this place."

"Why would you want to help me?"

The mermaid's chuckle made the water now rising to Dedue's chin feel all the colder. "You would spend precious time interrogating me? Surely your curiosity can wait. You don't have much time left."

Dedue took one last look up at the tunnel. Force his way through a camp of mercenaries, or trust a mermaid. It was time to choose his ending.

"What is your name?" Dedue asked.

The mermaid swam closer. "You may call me Hubert."

"Hubert. Lead the way."

Hubert smiled with all his teeth. Without hesitation, he dove under the water, moving towards Dedue's bound ankles. A swipe from his claws had Dedue free. He wasted no time in kicking off the ropes and weights, now able to tread water. Hubert broke the surface and grabbed Dedue's arm.

For a moment, Dedue was sure he would be dragged under and gutted. But Hubert's claws didn't even graze Dedude's skin as he clasped their hands together.

"Take a deep breath," Hubert warned.

Dedue did just that-- and then let the water envelope him.

With a tight grip on Dedue's hand, Hubert pulled him to an opening in the cave wall. It was just wide enough for them to swim side by side. Dedue suspected they wouldn't have fit at all except that Hubert was thin as seaweed and just as flexible, guiding them around corners with fluidity.

Dedue's lungs began to burn. He squeezed Hubert's hand. In answer, Hubert swam faster, his tail brushing Dedue's legs. The tail wasn't completely black, Dedue now noticed. Each scale was edged in wine red. Hubert's hand was warm, his expression nearing panic. It made Dedue consider if, perhaps, those nightmarish tales had been wrong.

With one final sharp turn, the pair sped out into the open ocean. Dedue's vision was fading, and Hubert immediately angled them upward, pulling Dedue along almost entirely on his own strength.

Dedue broke the surface with a gasp. He let go of Hubert's hand to keep himself afloat, flailing about ungraciously as air flooded his lungs once again.

Arms wrapped around his torso. Dedue jerked, trying to pull away. "Come here. It’s alright," soothed Hubert. "Just breathe."

There was little point in being suspicious of Hubert now. Dedue let Hubert hold him close, bowing his head into Hubert's shoulder and panting hard. Hubert and his not-quite-black tail keep them from sinking, and so Dedue could concentrate on simply breathing.

After several quiet moments, Dedue managed to say, "Thank you." His voice was hoarse and strained. Hubert didn't release him. For a moment, Dedue thought Hubert hadn't heard him. His claws skimmed up and down Dedue's back in a soothing rhythm. "I assume you... want something in return?" Dedue panted when Hubert didn't speak.

"Worry on that later," Hubert said. "Catch your breath and I will point you to shore. Then we will talk."

It had been two years since Houses Gautier and Fraldarius had begun their fight with the so-called “Faerghus Dukedom”. Ferdinand had hoped to join up with his old school friends and aid them in defending the Kingdom from Cornelia-- but the terrain was proving difficult to progress through. And now it was also raining.

Ferdinand guided his horse down a steep incline before locating an outcrop of rock to shelter them both. There was no use going on until the storm passed, so Ferdinand took his pack from the saddle and began taking out flint and food, already dreading his search for dry wood.

Just then, the crunch of boots met his ears. Ferdinand tensed. Who in their right mind would be out in this weather? Apart from himself, of course.

Whoever it was seemed to be limping away from Ferdinand’s shelter, judging by their gait, and Ferdinand poked his head out to catch a look. At first he thought his eyes were playing tricks. But there could be no mistaking that blond hair and tattered cloak, that proud chin and cold blue eyes.

Prince Dimitri struggled through the rain for a few more paces before collapsing to one knee, letting out a grunt of pain that made Ferdinand wince. The rain strengthened as if determined to keep Dimitri pinned down. Pushing through his shock, Ferdinand ran out into the storm.

“Dimitri!” Ferdinand knelt in the mud. “Dimitri, is it truely--”

A clawed gauntlet caught Ferdinand’s wrist. Dimitri lifted his head, fixing a single eye on Ferdinand. The other was covered by a patch, leaving Ferdinand’s imagination to fill in the gaps. It was then he noticed the other marks Dimitri bore-- thorns stuck to the inside of his arm, cuts along his neck and cheek, one knee bloody. “What has happened to you...?” Ferdinand wondered aloud. He was unable to keep the pity from his voice.

Dimitri didn’t seem to notice. He let go of Ferdinand and attempted to stand. “Where are you going?” Ferdinand grabbed Dimitri’s uninjured arm. “Surely there are people looking for you!”

“Let them look. All they will find is a corpse.”

“Indeed they will, if you continue walking around in the rain in this condition!”

Dimitir sneered. “A beast hunts no matter the weather.” 

He tried to march away again, but stumbled. Ferdinand took his weight with effort. “Enough of that talk. This way.” Dimitri straightened but didn’t protest this time. He allowed Ferdinand to take his hand and guide them back to the shelter at a brisk pace.

Once there, Ferdinand sat Dimitri in the driest spot right against the rock. He dug out a spare shirt from his pack and tossed it to Dimitri. “It is much too small but you can dry yourself off with it, at least,” Ferdinand explained even as Dimitri’s hair created a small puddle beside him. 

In short order, Ferdinand found a few branches that weren’t completely soaked through and set about making a fire. While he waited for it to grow, he knelt next to Dimitri again and began assessing his various wounds. 

“Finding you alive in the wilderness like this-- it is almost like an opera,” Ferdinand said when he couldn’t stand the silence any longer. Dimitri turned to him but said nothing. “I wish I had some tea to offer you. It would do us both good to enjoy a cup and warm up.”

Dimitri snorted, but Ferdinand saw the amusement in his face. “You would waste tea on me?” He asked, his tone nowhere near as harsh as before.

Ferdinand huffed. “It would not be a waste! Do not speak of yourself that way.”

Dimitri let out an airy chuckle. He took Ferdinand’s hand again and leaned against him, gaze on the fire. “I am warm enough like this.”

Ferdinand wanted to say that was hardly possible-- their clothes were still damp and there was little heat to be found there. But Dimitri sagged into Ferdinand as if finally allowing himself to rest. Though he had half a hundred questions to ask, Ferdinand couldn’t bring himself to interupt this bit of peace Dimitri had found.

"You said yourself that this spell from Annette is temporary," Dedue went on, swimming close enough that he had to lay across the sand. "I know you wish to escape the burdens of your crest, but I worry you will forever mourn a life you cannot get back to."

Sylvain lowered the glass orb. "I can just ask Annette to make more. Or a stronger one. Or even a permanent one, if I gave her enough time!" He said it like it was a joke, but he could tell Dedue saw right through him.

"Remember that life in the ocean has its own struggles."

"I know."

"You will be trading crest problems for other ones."

"Yeah, but..." Sylvain moved forward, the water now up to his thighs. He reached out and took Dedue's hand. "The ocean's got you. That's enough for me."

Dedue's steel grey eyes rounded before he let out a warm chuckle. He squeezed Sylvain's hand. "I am not trying to talk you out of this, you understand. There is much I wish to show you under the ocean."

Sylvain grinned. "Can't wait." He knelt in the water, soaking his clothes with a sense of finality. Taking a deep breath of air-- his last for the next 24 hours-- Sylvain clutched the orb in his hand.

It cracked, fractured, and broke. The gem that had be suspended inside grazed Sylvain's palm.

Pain instantly spiked through Sylvain's chest and he gasped, a sharp thing that only hurt him more. His legs cramped horribly. Shutting his eyes tight, Sylvain grit his teeth, back bowing as he tried to hold in another cry. Dedue was speaking to him but none of the words could make it past the pain.

Squeezing Sylvain's hand again, Dedue pulled Sylvain under the waves.

Cool saltwater instantly soothed Sylvain's body. Dedue pulled Sylvain deeper, until the sand disappeared from under them, and Sylvain unfurled.

A sunset orange tail trailed after him. Slack jawed, Sylvain ran his hand across the delicate scales, marveling at the subtle stripes of turquoise just visible when the tail turned the right way. When he turned his tail the right way. Sylvain flipped his tail giddily. It was so easy to control, as if his torso had always ended in a mermaid's tail.

"It worked!" He exclaimed, probably unnecessarily. "Dedue, I can--"

Dedue kissed him. With one hand against Sylvain's lower back, Dedue wrapped his tail around Sylvain's, lacing their fingers together. Usually their kisses caused one of them to be in some awkward position to accommodate the other; Sylvain kneeling in seashells or Dedue craning his neck up. Sea and land weren't meant to fold together neatly.

This was the closest they had ever been to one another. And it was heaven.

Sylvain rest his free hand on Dedue's shoulder, sinking into the kiss. He wasn't sure if the tail tangling part was a typical mermaid thing or Dedue showing relief that the spell worked-- and he didn't care. Sylvain had water in his lungs, a strong hand in his grip, and Dedue over his mouth. Nothing else mattered in that moment.

It was Dedue who pulled away first. He touched his forehead to Sylvain's, uncurling their tails but still holding Sylvain close. "How do you feel?" He asked.

"Better than ever," Sylvain replied, lips still tingling.

At the mention, Dedue unconsciously reached up to touch his unadorned earlobe. He hadn't noticed his Duscur earring missing until well after the fight. Hilda had gasped and pointed at the side of his head as if the ear itself had been cut off.

Dedue watched Hubert take a few steps before bending again. “What do you want with my earring?”

“I do not want your earring,” Hubert corrected. “But I cannot have you distracted. This earring clearly has sentimental or nostalgic meaning to you. If I can locate it, you can keep your focus on the war.” He picked an arrowhead from the water and tossed it aside. 

“That water is freezing. Do not waste your time on my account.”

“Don’t tell me how to waste my time.”

Dedue shook his head. He had become accustomed to Hubert’s stubbornness by now. Sitting on the stiff spring grass, he undid his boots, placed them beside Hubert’s, and stepped into the river. Even with all his years living in the northern parts of the Kingdom, Dedue gave a shiver-- the water was just as cold as it had been when Dedue had charged through it earlier. 

Hubert continued searching. He pushed aside rocks and grabbed at promising clumps of sand, glaring at his find each time it didn’t turn out to be the earring. Once he reached his side, Dedue put a hand on Hubert’s shoulder to stop him. 

Hubert finally met his eyes. “It’s worth looking once, at least,” Hubert said. “You are distracted enough-- putting yourself between Dimitri and every conceivable threat on and off the battlefield. If I can take one worry from you I will.” 

“I will lament its loss but I’m hardly the type to be consumed by grief over a bit of jewelry.” Dedue lowered his gaze to Hubert’s hands. They were turning a harsh pink, almost red. Dedue took both Hubert’s hands in his own and rubbed them gently. “I care more about your wellbeing than any earring. You will lose your fingers at this rate.”

Hubert frowned at their hands but Dedue saw his shoulders relax. “Surely a memento of your homeland means more to you than if I have cold fingers or not.”

“I am not so sure anymore.”

Hubert abruptly looked back at the river. His hands tightened in Dedue’s grasp. A tight discomfort gripped Dedue’s chest that had nothing to do with the cold water, and the two were quite for a long moment. It felt as though elaborating on that statement would upset whatever balance they had found working side by side together during this war-- but if that upset could be for the better... 

“Hubert--”

“There!” 

In a flurry of movement, Hubert pulled his hands from Dedue’s and practically dived for something just to Dedue’s left. Straightening, he uncurled his fist to reveal, to Dedue’s amazement, the earring. 

Dedue could only stand there as Hubert shoved the earring into his hands and marched out of the river. “I’ll thank you to never doubt me again,” Hubert called from the bank. 

Stunned, Dedue fit the earring back in place. Relief flooded him as the familiar weight returned, and he sent a silent prayer to his gods in gratitude. 

Hubert was pulling his gloves back on when Dedue stepped out of the river. “Thank you,” Dedue said, putting a hand to his heart and bowing in a way he usually reserved for Dimitri.

“You’re welcome.” Hubert’s brow was furrowed. He looked up at Dedue, fiddling with the hem of one glove. “What were you about to say?”

Dedue looked at him. “Who?”

“The boar. You’ve been acting strange lately. I hope you’re not pining after him or something. Every woman in Fódlan is already doing that.”

“I am not pining for His Majesty.”

“Good.” 

Dedue couldn’t help a small smile. “Are you worried for me, Felix?”

Felix scowled and uncrossed his arms. “Even lapdogs deserve to be happy. That’s all I’m saying.” 

The music stopped again, and they both looked up to find Ignatz rubbing his shoulder and Dorothea lecturing a flushed Dimitri about holding on too tight. Dedue shook his head. “His Majesty knows how I feel about him. But I appreciate your concern.” Felix didn’t seem to think that was worth responding to, so Dedue merely nodded to him and left the room. 

Castle Fhirdiad was growing busier by the day. The wedding was still a week away, but everyone had a part to play in getting things ready. Edelgard’s arrival seemed to have impressed upon the staff how close they were getting to the big day-- and Claude’s arrival in a few days would surely increase activity tenfold. 

But Dedue had the evening off. So he made his way to his rooms without pause. Inside, he found quite the welcome sight.

Hubert sat on the couch before the roaring fire, holding a book in one hand and a cup of coffee in the other, already dressed down for the night. When he saw Dedue, Hubert put down the coffee but kept reading the book. 

Dedue began taking off his armor. “I believe Felix expressed sympathy towards me just now,” he said in greeting.

“We should speak to Mercedes about getting him looked over,” Hubert replied dryly. He turned a page. “What did he say?”

“He seems to think I am secretly in love with His Majesty and thus in pain over his engagement.”

“Hm.”

“He said I deserve to be happy.”

“On that we agree.”

Free from his armor, Dedue sat beside Hubert and lifted his arm in invitation. Hubert filled the spot without hesitation, fitting against Dedue’s side and letting out a sigh. “Perhaps it’s time we told everyone,” Hubert said, closing the book at last.

“Perhaps.” Dedue tucked his chin over Hubert’s head. The smell of coffee still lingered, a scent Dedue associated with Hubert so much that it never failed to set him at ease. “His Majesty and Emperor Edelgard took the news of our relationship well enough. But I would hate to distract from the wedding preparation.”

Hubert let out a snort of amusement. “You show your pride in the strangest ways sometimes. You truly believe news of us would distract an entire castle?”

“Not the entire castle, no. Our friends, maybe. Felix most definitely.”

“Well then. For Felix’s sake, let us hold off a little longer.”

Dedue hummed his agreement, wrapping an arm around Hubert. “Just a little longer,” he repeated.